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10.2
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Journals
Antibiotics
Special Issues
Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment
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Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment

A special issue of Antibiotics (ISSN 2079-6382). This special issue belongs to the section "Antibiotics Use and Antimicrobial Stewardship".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2027 | Viewed by 5012

Editors

Dr. Doris Rušić

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, University of Split School of Medicine, 21000 Split, Croatia
Interests: community pharmacy; antimicrobial resistance; public health and IBD
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Lovre Zekan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
1. Department of Pharmacy, University of Split School of Medicine, 21000 Split, Croatia
2. Split-Dalmatia County Pharmacy, 21204 Dugopolje, Croatia
Interests: pharmacy; antibiotics, public health

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pharmacy practice in antimicrobial therapy is essential for optimising patient outcomes and containing one of the greatest threats to health today and in the future: antimicrobial resistance. We are pleased to invite you to contribute to our Special Issue. Pharmacists are able to position themselves as key members of antimicrobial stewardship programs and teams, ensuring the rational and evidence-based use of antibiotics. Hospital pharmacists collaborate with other healthcare team members to select appropriate antimicrobial agents, considering pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics to target resistant pathogens effectively. Through interventions like prospective audit and feedback, pharmacists enhance antimicrobial use, reducing hospital stays and healthcare costs. Pharmacists may promote guideline adherence, de-escalate therapy when possible, and prevent unnecessary prescriptions. Both hospital and community pharmacists educate patients on adherence and potential adverse effects, improving treatment success. This Special Issue aims to highlight the evolving role that pharmacists play in infectious disease management, emphasising the strategies used to optimise therapy, contain resistance, and improve patient safety in diverse clinical settings. We encourage our fellow colleagues to explore the variety of roles that pharmacists play in optimising antimicrobial therapy.

Dr. Doris Rušić
Guest Editor

Dr. Lovre Zekan
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Antibiotics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • antimicrobial stewardship
  • community pharmacy
  • antibiotic resistance
  • antimicrobial use optimisation
  • pharmacist intervention
  • antibiotic prescribing
  • infectious diseases

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 252 KB  
Article
Antibiotic Shortages: Pharmacists’ Experiences, Perspectives, and Perceived Clinical Impacts
by Maarten Lambert, Chloé Corrie Hans Smit, Katja Taxis and Lisa Pont
Antibiotics 2026, 15(8), 808; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics15080808 - 19 Aug 2026
Viewed by 171
Abstract
Background: Australia has experienced high rates of antibiotic shortages, yet little is known about how Australian pharmacists experience and manage them. This study aimed to explore Australian community and hospital pharmacists’ experiences of antibiotic shortages, including their perceived clinical impact and approaches [...] Read more.
Background: Australia has experienced high rates of antibiotic shortages, yet little is known about how Australian pharmacists experience and manage them. This study aimed to explore Australian community and hospital pharmacists’ experiences of antibiotic shortages, including their perceived clinical impact and approaches to managing shortages. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted with Australian community and hospital pharmacists between May and August 2024. Participants were recruited via convenience sampling through professional networks and social media. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed thematically using an inductive–deductive approach, with coding performed independently by two researchers. Results: Fifteen interviews were conducted before data saturation was reached. Sixty percent of participants were female, 67% worked in hospital settings, and pharmacists were located across five Australian states. Four overarching themes were identified: factors driving shortages, communication and collaboration, impact of shortages, and mitigation and prevention. Pharmacists described antibiotic shortages as frequent and unpredictable, attributing them to supply-chain vulnerabilities, limited manufacturing, and market competition. Shortages were reported to affect treatment choice, contribute to antimicrobial resistance concerns, increase pharmacist workload and stress, and negatively affect patients. Pharmacists used strategies such as stock management, collaboration, and importing alternatives, but felt that lasting solutions required coordinated national action. Conclusions: Australian pharmacists perceive antibiotic shortages as a complex challenge affecting patient care, antimicrobial stewardship, workload, and healthcare efficiency. While pharmacists have developed reactive strategies to manage shortages, stronger communication, collaboration, and national policy coordination, alongside improved supply-chain resilience, are needed to reduce the impact of future shortages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment)
21 pages, 278 KB  
Article
Contextual Determinants of Clinical Pharmacists’ Contributions to Team-Based Antimicrobial Stewardship in Jordanian Hospitals: A Realist-Informed Qualitative Study
by Mona Bustami, Saba Ammar Alabdali, Mohammad Abu Assab, Inas Almazari, Wafa’ A. Al-Haj, Wael Abu Dayyih, Hayam A. Alrasheed, Zainab Zakaraya and Anas Abed
Antibiotics 2026, 15(7), 670; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics15070670 - 8 Jul 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1315
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Clinical pharmacists contribute pharmacotherapy expertise to antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), but antimicrobial prescribing remains a multidisciplinary process led by treating clinicians. In physician-centered hospital systems, pharmacists’ contributions may be integrated into prescribing decisions to varying degrees depending on the organizational structures, interprofessional relationships, [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Clinical pharmacists contribute pharmacotherapy expertise to antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), but antimicrobial prescribing remains a multidisciplinary process led by treating clinicians. In physician-centered hospital systems, pharmacists’ contributions may be integrated into prescribing decisions to varying degrees depending on the organizational structures, interprofessional relationships, workflow integration, and prescribing cultures. This study aimed to explore how contextual and interprofessional factors shape the integration of clinical pharmacists’ antimicrobial stewardship contributions within multidisciplinary prescribing decisions in Jordanian hospitals. Methods: A multi-site qualitative study was conducted across nine Jordanian hospitals. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 clinical pharmacists involved in antimicrobial reviews in intensive care and general medical units. Interviews incorporated the critical incident technique to elicit examples of accepted and rejected stewardship recommendations. Data were analyzed using a realist-informed approach to develop context–mechanism–outcome configurations explaining variations in pharmacists’ reported AMS contribution. Results: Pharmacotherapy expertise was necessary but not sufficient for pharmacists’ recommendations to shape antimicrobial prescribing. Leadership endorsement, structured multidisciplinary rounds, and formal documentation pathways activated mechanisms of legitimacy, credibility, and workflow visibility, supporting reported uptake of dose optimization, therapeutic drug monitoring, and selected de-escalation recommendations. In contrast, prescriber-led hierarchies, limited documentation pathways, workload pressures, and defensive prescribing cultures activated mechanisms of self-limitation, risk aversion, and limited recommendation uptake, particularly for discontinuation, duration control, and narrowing of broad-spectrum therapy. Conclusions: Strengthening AMS requires not only formal committees and guidelines but also team-based structures that integrate pharmacists’ pharmacotherapy expertise into antimicrobial review while preserving clinicians’ ultimate prescribing responsibility. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment)
16 pages, 622 KB  
Article
Developing a Pharmacist-Centered Novel Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS) Approach for Healthcare in Pakistan: A Grounded Theory Study
by Parniya Akbar Ali, Shaheer Ellahi Khan and Abdul Momin Rizwan Ahmad
Antibiotics 2025, 14(12), 1235; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14121235 - 8 Dec 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1293
Abstract
Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the most significant global health threats of the 21st century, endangering healthcare systems worldwide as a silent pandemic. Despite the globally recognized role of pharmacists as antimicrobial stewards, their involvement remains limited in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) [...] Read more.
Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the most significant global health threats of the 21st century, endangering healthcare systems worldwide as a silent pandemic. Despite the globally recognized role of pharmacists as antimicrobial stewards, their involvement remains limited in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) endeavors in Pakistan. Methods: By utilizing the Straussian grounded theory methodology, this study aimed to develop a pharmacist-centered novel AMS approach for healthcare in Pakistan in order to enhance the engagement of pharmacists in AMS and reduce the burden of AMR in Pakistan. Through 13 semi-structured in-depth interviews with pharmacists and AMS experts, this study explored the facilitators and obstacles faced by pharmacists in Pakistan pertaining to their participation in AMS. Results: The findings highlighted the underutilization of pharmacists in AMS owing to persistent policy, institutional, and resource-level barriers. Several facilitators were also identified, including institutional ownership and pharmacist-prescriber-patient (3P) communication. The evidence generated informed the development of the pharmacist-centered novel AMS approach, which recommends extending AMS policy support to pharmacists, improving One Health interdisciplinary collaborations, promoting pharmacist-led behavior change campaigns, granting prescribing rights to pharmacists for minor ailments, and advancing AMS trainings and education. Conclusions: Formally integrating pharmacists into AMS efforts is the need of the hour to contain the consequences of AMR in Pakistan. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment)
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13 pages, 3177 KB  
Article
“I Felt Empowered”: Patient-Reported Experience with a Pilot National Community Pharmacy-Based Urinary Tract Infection Service
by Efi Mantzourani, Andrew Evans, Rhian Deslandes, Haroon Ahmed, Nicola Reeve, Samuel Macdonald and Rebecca Cannings-John
Antibiotics 2025, 14(11), 1086; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14111086 - 28 Oct 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1596
Abstract
Background: In June 2024, urinary tract infections (UTIs) were added to the list of conditions that could be treated by community pharmacists providing the national Common Ailments Service in Wales. The aim of this study was to describe patient-reported experiences of UTI management [...] Read more.
Background: In June 2024, urinary tract infections (UTIs) were added to the list of conditions that could be treated by community pharmacists providing the national Common Ailments Service in Wales. The aim of this study was to describe patient-reported experiences of UTI management by pharmacists. Methods: A positivist research paradigm was selected, with data collection through a survey. Results: In total, 309 surveys were received between 29 June 2024 and 14 July 2025. Patients rated their experience using a scale of 1 (very poor) to 10 (excellent), with a median score of 10 (IQR = 10 to 10, range 6 to 10). High satisfaction was independent of age and provision of antibiotics, with the same median and IQR and a similar range between the groups who received and did not receive antibiotics (7–10 and 6–10, respectively). Of the 309 respondents, 297 (96.1%) stated that the next time they had a UTI, they would return to the pharmacy instead of trying to see a GP, and 253 (81.9%) that they understood why antibiotics are not always recommended. Conclusions: Community pharmacists managed patient expectations, improved patient confidence in managing current symptoms and provided information on self-care strategies for preventing future infections, demonstrating their valuable role in health promotion and antimicrobial stewardship. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pharmacist-Led Management of Antimicrobial Treatment)
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